In week 22 (May 31–June 6, 2021), the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 across the country declined sharply, and the strain on hospitals eased. After several months of excess mortality, the number of deaths from all causes has returned to expected levels. Recently made available to all individuals aged 18 and older, vaccination among young adults is progressing rapidly (more than 27% of 18- to 24-year-olds had received their first dose as of June 8, 2021). However, vaccination coverage, although high among the elderly, is struggling to increase, requiring targeted actions to encourage and facilitate vaccination among seniors who have not yet been vaccinated. Against the backdrop of easing health restrictions and the circulation of variants of concern, self-isolation upon the onset of symptoms or in the event of contact with a confirmed case, contact tracing, full vaccination, and other individual preventive measures must continue to be strongly promoted and enforced to sustain the current favorable trend over the long term.

Significant decrease in incidence rates across all age groups

Nationwide, 45,547 new cases were confirmed in week 22, averaging approximately 6,500 cases per day. The incidence rate was sharply lower compared to that of week 21 (adjusted for the effect of the Monday, May 24 holiday) at 68 per 100,000 inhabitants (-38%), with this decrease observed across all age groups. The testing rate decreased (2,988 per 100,000 inhabitants, a 15% decrease compared to the adjusted rate for Week 21). The positivity rate continued to decline to 2.3%, a decrease of 0.8 percentage points compared to Week 21.

The decline continues in hospitals

The decline in the number of new hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients and new admissions to critical care units, observed since Week 15, continued in Week 22 (-12% and -22% compared to Week 21, respectively), even though numbers remained high. The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients continued to decline as of June 8, 2021 (14,043, including 2,407 in critical care units).

Furthermore, the number of deaths from all causes and across all age groups was within the usual range of fluctuation in weeks 20 and 21 after nearly eight months of excess mortality nationwide. Deaths among hospitalized COVID-19 patients continued to decline in week 22 (-23%) and remained at a very low level in social and medico-social institutions (ESMS).

The Alpha variant remains predominant; the Delta variant calls for the utmost vigilance

The proportion of suspected cases of the variant of concern 20I/501Y.V1 (Alpha, which emerged in the United Kingdom) remains predominant, accounting for 74.6%, according to an analysis of screening results in week 22. The proportion of suspected cases of the 20H/501Y.V2 variant (Beta, which emerged in South Africa) or the 20J/501Y.V3 variant (Gamma, which emerged in Brazil) was 6.3% nationally, with regional variations.

Available genomic surveillance data confirm this predominance of the variant of concern Alpha (20I/501Y.V1). In the Flash #10 survey (May 25, 2021), a slight decrease was observed in the proportion of variants carrying the E484K or E484Q mutations to 10.8% (13.0% in the Flash #9 survey vs. 11% in Flash #8 and 8.7% in Flash #7). Despite a recent increase in the detection of the VOC 21A/478K variant (B.1.617.2, Delta, which emerged in India) in sequenced samples, there is currently no evidence of significant circulation of this lineage within the country.

However, the emergence of clusters with local transmission of this variant indicates that such transmission has begun in France, which calls for the utmost vigilance, given its link to potential vaccine escape and data suggesting increased transmissibility compared to the reference variants and the 20I/501Y.V1 (Alpha) variant.

Significant increase in vaccination rates among young adults

As of June 8, 2021:

• 28,699,432 people had received at least one dose of the vaccine, representing 42.8% of the population

• 14,358,578 had completed their vaccination series, representing 21.4% of the population.

Recently made available to everyone aged 18 and older, vaccination among young adults has increased significantly in recent weeks: more than 27% of 18- to 24-year-olds had received their first dose as of June 8, 2021. However, while vaccination coverage is high among older adults, it has struggled to increase in recent weeks, highlighting the need to encourage and facilitate access to vaccination for older adults who have not yet been vaccinated through targeted and specific initiatives.